Avoiding propeller and vessel strike injuries
Propeller injuries and vessel strikes impacting divers and swimmers are the sorts of things that make you shudder. These accidents should be avoided at all costs and it needs to be acknowledged that they’re most often caused by negligence and inexperience.
An article on the Dan Boater website states: the fact is, regardless of your location, the key to preventing injuries and death by propeller and vessel strikes is simple: boaters, divers, and swimmers must be proactively aware of one another at all times.
The website includes valuable tips for boaters on how to avoid propeller injuries and vessel strikes, and also tips for swimmers and divers on how to keep safe (avoiding propeller and vessel strikes).
Boaters are advised to:
- Avoid alcohol consumption while on board. This applies to your passengers, as well.
- Use a kill switch with a lanyard at all times to automatically shut off the engine in the event something happens to the driver.
- Avoid swimming zones and stay the required safe distance away from dive flags - a distance of at least 300 feet from flags and buoys in open water and at least 100 feet in inlets or navigation channels.
- Ensure the engine is off and the propeller is still before allowing boarding or disembarking. This includes the swim platform; do not allow anyone near it while the engine is in gear.
- Make it clear to your passengers that they must stay clear of the propeller at all times, even when it is not moving. An immobile propeller can still cause injury.
- Before starting the boat, make sure no one is swimming or diving near or under the boat.
- Do not allow people to sit on the transom, bow, or gunwales. All it takes is one good bounce or unexpected swerve to send your passengers overboard.
- Constantly look for people in the water. Do not assume divers and swimmers are always visible. Glare from the sun, waves, passenger activities, weather conditions, and other factors can make visibility challenging.
Swimmers and divers are advised to:
- Remain clear of the propeller at all times - even a disengaged propeller can cause injuries.
- Use the diver down and alpha flags appropriately. Stay within 300 feet of the diver down the flag or buoy in open water and 100 feet when diving in rivers, inlets, or navigation channels. Aim to surface within 150 feet of the dive flag.
- Establish clear communication with the boat operator and others on board so everyone knows what you plan to do.
- Pay attention to the boat procedures and dive briefing.
- Wait until the boat operator indicates the engine is off, and it is safe to enter the water; follow the established safety procedures for entering and exiting the boat.
- Never assume you are visible in the water. Use flags, buoys, and other devices to make yourself more noticeable.
- Maintain vigilance. Keep an eye out for boat traffic at all times. Divers: scan for boat traffic during your safety stops.
Additional tips for boaties from the boat-ed.com website (geared around preventing passengers from being thrown overboard accidentally) include: never starting a boat with the engine in gear, ensuring all passengers are seated properly before getting underway, and assigning a responsible adult to watch any children in the boat and sound the alarm if a child falls overboard.
As you would expect, Maritime NZ has dedicated pearls of wisdom to this topic too. Have a read of this story shared by a young man named George Booth who knows full well the value of a kill switch. George suffered life-changing injuries during a fishing trip and says safety lanyards or “engine kill switches” are vital in preventing further, potentially fatal, accidents.
George, 21, received horrific injuries to his right leg when the skipper of the boat, in which he was traveling, hit a wave at speed and lost control near Mangawhai Heads last summer. Tossed over the side of the boat and into the water, George was struck by the propeller of the inflatable motorboat. Have a read of the article to discover why he’s lucky to be alive and why he recommends engine kill switches.
Maritime NZ Southern Compliance Manager Domonic Venz says it is critical in high-pressure situations that skippers understand how to avoid situations that can put themselves, their passengers, or others at risk.
His comment was made after an accident earlier this year in which a girl suffered serious lacerations when her legs were hit by a propeller. The Radio NZ article tells how she was unable to walk for months - it’s another personal story outlining how easily things can go wrong.
Maritime NZ recommends anyone in control of a vessel should consider safer boating courses [www.saferboating.org.nz undertaking courses] to ensure they have the right skills to manage potentially dangerous situations.
The boatus.com website argues that of all the various types of personal injury claims, none are more frightening than those involving propellers. The injuries are often horrific and, equally as disturbing, may have been prevented by exercising good seamanship.
This leads to the question… have you ever thought of investing in a propeller guard? Did you know there’s a New Zealand company that has developed a simple, easy-to-fit propeller guard that may just be the best protection against injury and accidents in the water from outboard propellers that you’ll find? “Prop Guard does what it is designed to do and that provides underwater protection for both the prop and swimmers and divers.” Check out this site to find out more.
Buying a propeller guard is an option. What’s mandatory is being well aware of all the safety protocols as outlined in the article above in order to keep safe this summer.
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